Mowers are known for cutting grass that comprise a traction unit with a front mounted rotary cutting deck in advance of the traction unit. Such mowers are relatively long when compared with mowers in which the cutting deck is mounted under the belly of the mower. In addition, such mowers typically have the cutting deck suspended or carried from a front carrier frame. Thus, it can be difficult to service the cutting deck or to transport or store the mower when the cutting deck is attached to the traction unit.
Some mowers permit the carrier frame and cutting deck to be folded up relative to the traction unit while still attached to the traction unit. This exposes the underside of the cutting deck for service and reduces the front to back length of the mower for easier storage. However, the mechanisms previously used to fold the carrier frame and cutting deck are unduly complicated and often add substantial expense to the mower. It would be an advance in the art to find a simple, durable and inexpensive way to fold a carrier frame and a cutting deck up relative to a traction unit.
In some mowers of this type, the mower is further elongated by the need for the operator to mount or dismount from the operator's seat. This is often done by having the operator climb up onto the seat from behind the front wheels of the mower. It would be desirable for the operator to be able to mount or dismount from over the front mounted cutting deck, but known mowers of this type do not easily permit this.